Bob Weir - Gibson ES-335

Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead has played many guitar brands in his career including Ibanez, Guild and Modulus, but is most notably associated with a 1959 sunburst Gibson ES-335 that he acquired in the late 1960's and played extensively during the classic Dead era of the late sixties and early seventies.

1959 Gibson ES-335 - Sunburst

Pat Simmons - Gibson ES-335

In the mid-seventies, Pat Simmons of The Doobie Brothers switched to the Gibson ES-335 from the ES-345.

Said Pat in Guitar Player in 1976:

"A Gibson ES-345 was the standard guitar that I used to use for leads and regular chording. It's a stereo, and I disconnected its varitone, which is kind of a limiter and enables you to get a Fender sound or like a thin sound out of the guitar, but I never could get behind the sounds, really. If I want a sound like a Fender, I'd rather play a Fender guitar."

"With it disconnected I got more power, and a cleaner sound. And then I've got an ES-335 that I've got tuned to a modal D; starting from the bottom up that's D, A, D, D, A, D."

Mid Seventies Gibson ES-335 - Cherry

Alvin Lee - "Big Red"

Immortalized with Ten Years After at Woodstock, Alvin Lee's sticker-covered 1959 Gibson ES-335 named "Big Red" was customized with a Stratocaster pickup and is now valued at $500,000.

Says Lee:

"I always liked the Strat sound but when I play a Strat I find my little finger on the right hand keeps turning the volume down unintentionally. I figured that by adding a Strat back pickup to my 335 I would have the best of both worlds.""

"Working on the 335 electronics is a bit like keyhole surgery. I used to fasten guitar strings to the pots, toggle switch and jack socket before dropping them into the body and pulling them out the F holes. That way there is a good chance of getting them back in place again later."

1959 Gibson ES-335 - Cherry With Stickers